Misuse of words

[LizSwann32]

my acting class was talking about the misuse of certain words a while ago, and now it's becoming more apparent to me that people use, or misuse rather, these words quite often. For example:

gay---often used to say "stupid" or "annoying" or as an insult of any kind.
********--- again, often used to say "stupid", "annoying", "slow"


these words are so overused that it's becoming ridiculous, we might as well be saying "oh, that's so chair" or " well, that's table", the definitions of these words have been so warped you might as well be using the words underlined above.

I mean I really doubt that an outfit or a locker is (by dictionary definition)"slow or limited in intellectual or emotional development or academic progress". Or a test grade can be (again, by dictionary definition) "of, relating to, or characterized by a tendency to direct sexual desire toward another of the same sex"

All I want to do is stop the hate, and educate people who don't understand what they're saying. what do you all think?

 

[BabyPiglet]

I couldn't agree more! I always stop people and tell them the proper definition of the word and how it's not right to use 'gay' or 'retarted' in place of words like 'stupid' and 'annoying'.

 

[Ms.Squeakers]

I agree very much.
My...great uncle? His brain was "fried" since he was born, and though he has never talked or actually communicated for his entire life, he is still a person with feelings and his parents understand him.

I feel the definitions of words have always been warped and are always going to be warped.

I hate it when people say "ILY" every friggin second at school! THEY ARE IN 7TH GRADE! MY LORD! They do not know what true love is, not even I know the powers of love.



Im beginning to get the feeling that the world is a hatred place, and I don't like the looks of it.


Okay so wow, that was really off topic, but in a way it fit in...dontcha think?

 

[hakunamatatahunni]

******** and gay started as slang terms to begin with.
gay means to be happy.. homosexual men are often thought of to be overly cheery hence them being called gay.
******** means to be slowed down.. mentally disabled people are often said to have brains that work slowly, hence them being called ********.

does it really matter if we use these words for a third meaning?

 

[OmeDeBeard]

That's a great idea! I'm gonna start saying "That's so chair!"
But still, I understand what you're getting at, and I totally understand and agree with it.
I also agree with Ms.Squeakers and her ILY thing.

And since people kept on saying gay in the slang at our Christian School, they banned the word... lol, but it's true

 

[CheezDoodle]

Darn, I thought this was going to be a thread about grammar in general.

All of my gay friends say gay, as in 'stupid'. And they don't get offended when other people say it.

 

[AmandaSparks730]

Gosh, I know!

"Gay", "***", "queer (as in 'that's so queer')" actually really hurt people who ARE gay. I was there when someone made a gay joke in front of my gay friend and she was really hurt...just the look on her face was heartbreaking...

 

[reminisce]

ita.

i dont really see the point in using 'gay' or '********', anyways. see, i think its sorta funny to insult people with big words. confusing people and insulting them at the same time is a major bonus.

no, im not saying i insult people all the time, just that when i have to stick up for myself or for others i like to make it hurt.

 

[Babyjustrun]

I love you.
The most misused sentence in the world.
These kids, they drive me insane. Little immature ninth graders (I wish I didn't have to be grouped in with them simply because I'm in grade 9), for some reason see that if you tell someone that you like them, and they reciprocate this 'liking' then the both of you are in love.
And their MSN names say like

Jack. ILY SOOO MUCH ♥♥♥ ROBERTA!!!!

Ugh. Half the time they say they're dating and never go out. And then they just go and date the rest of their friends and their friends exes.

 

[ohdisco]

Hmm, with I love you, there are certain exceptions for me when it comes from kids. I know a couple who started dating when they just turned 13. They're almost 20, and they're still together and madly in love.

The whole gay thing is stupid. I find it awkward saying it in a sentence when referring to something stupid (not as in, awkward to say gay, but it just doesn't flow very well). I say "********" when talking to people. It just, a habit I have inherited from a grandmother that was a huge bigot.

 

[Ms.Squeakers]

I love you.
The most misused sentence in the world.
These kids, they drive me insane. Little immature ninth graders (I wish I didn't have to be grouped in with them simply because I'm in grade 9), for some reason see that if you tell someone that you like them, and they reciprocate this 'liking' then the both of you are in love.
And their MSN names say like

Jack. ILY SOOO MUCH ♥♥♥ ROBERTA!!!!

Ugh. Half the time they say they're dating and never go out. And then they just go and date the rest of their friends and their friends exes.

Ugh,
I hate that.
The one thing I can understand is when you love someone like a family member.
If that makes sense.


I love my friends (some happen to be guys)

but I dont LOVE them.

If that makes sense.
I feel that love is, when you would be terribly torn apart if they died.
OR,
You always think about them within a week of being away.


NOT


"ZOMG ILY SO FRIGGON MUCH TYLOR!!!, 7.13.2008 WHEN TRUE LOVE BEGANN"

then next week its

"ZOMG ILY SO FRIGGON MUCH ANDREW!!!, 7.20.2008 WHEN TRUE LOVE BEGANN"


Its like "Uhm..thats the same message...except with different names..."


In my AIM message once I wrote "I love my friends. Without them, I would be completely bored and wouldn't know what do to, and I wouldn't keep laughing when I see Mr.Johnsons arm hair"

NOT


"ILY SO FRIGGON MUCH MY BOYFRIEND WHO IVE ONLY GONE OUT WITH FOR A DAY, AND WE HAVNT EVEN GONE OUT, AND I JUST MET HIM 2 HOURS AGO, AND WE ALREADY KISSED IN THE HALLWAY (PLUS A LIL SUMPTIN MORE...IF YA KNOW WHAT I MEAN )"


That just annoys me.
My crush, we are under some some sort of agreement.

We are the type of friendship, where we are too shy to say the littlest things, or even hug each other (..I mean a friendly hug...not..those yucky hugs).


Nothing more.
I like it that way, I kinda made it loud and clear that I didn't wanna go out with anyone until im 16, and he said the same thing.

Naw, he doesn't like me, but whenever I talk about him, it sounds like he does..which is awkward, because... i never exaggerate stories like that, and..it really does sound like he likes me, and I don't think he does...maybe...
I don't know, we never really discussed it, but everyone thinks we are going out...


ANYWAY,

Ugh.
That was long, but seriously.

ILY is...annoying.

 

[disney100666]

when people are like "That's SO Gay" I'm always like "it's happy?" uh ya there just like ughhh...

 

[OneTreeHill]

I agree with mostof these things.

First, I hate it when people say gay as a bad thing. It makes me really mad. It is insulting to people who actually are gay.

********. Yes, I don't think it is great to say, but I do say it out of habit. I don't mean to, but sometimes it just slips out cause it is like habit to me now.

I agree with you, Ms.Squeakers.
ily is sooo overused, and used for the wrong reasons.
I totally love my friends. Love as in, I don't know what I would do without them, and that kind of thing.

Not that "love" people talk about with ily and things like that. To me, ily is like a fake love. It's what you say to someone you don't really care about. I think that if you love someone you should just come out and say I love you.

Kids in my school go around saying 'ILY or those other annoying ones.
I'm sorry, but school is not online. And even online things like that get annoying. LOL and OMG, those ones I think are okay, when used online. NOT in everyday life.

But yes, I agree. So many words nowadays are misused.

 

[disney100666]

People actully say "ILY" like in IM form in school!?! :O wow...

 

[OneTreeHill]

People actully say "ILY" like in IM form in school!?! :O wow...

Oh, yeah. All the time.
It's soooo incredibley annoying.

 

[disney100666]

Oh, yeah. All the time.
It's soooo incredibley annoying.

Wow. That would be really annoying.

 

[xCourxCorex]

I hear ya on "i love you"... i think (generally) most of the kids that say this are not IN love, but they have strong feelings for the person, and equate this to love, and say "i love you".
It's almost like when you say, I love you, but I'm not in love with you. I feel like that happens alot with seperating couples. Ya know, like "I'm leaving.. I love you, I'm just not IN love with you..."

 

[joepic]

yeah I know where you're coming from. It doesn't bother me nearly as much as spelling errors.

Your, you're, their they're

nobody gets those right. it makes me so mad

 

[Vannah]

Ugh.
I was at a church thing for three days last week and the word I kept hearing over and over was "GAY" as in "OMG, he's so gay, he won't text me back!" or "my phone's so gay" or "school's gay".
It's very annoying.

 

[BabyPiglet]

I believe if you truly, deeply love someone then you tell them 'I love you' not 'ILY' or 'I luv yaaaa.' Ya know?

I love you.
It's just three simple words that mean SO much if you know they're actually true. If you haven't been in love, then you can't really understand that. I think some of you get what I'm saying though. It means a lot.

To seem them become some common words among 11 years olds is pretty sad.